RICHMOND, Va., Sept. 14, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --

• Senior Vice President Bolton retires
• Cardiff promoted to vice president; new assignments for Venable, Bean, Shell

Dominion (NYSE: D) announced today a number of changes within its officer ranks, effective Sept. 1, 2012.

• M. Stuart Bolton, Jr., senior vice president, has retired from the company after more than 37 years of service. He held numerous management positions, including district manager for the Charlottesville, Va., office. During his career, Bolton also was actively involved in the electric rate-setting process for Virginia Power's retail and wholesale customers. He became vice president and controller of Virginia Power in 1999 and served as a senior vice president in various capacities since 2000. He assumed his current position in 2010.

Thomas F. Farrell II, chairman, president and chief executive officer, said: 

"Stuart Bolton has served Dominion with distinction and dedication to our customers, shareholders, communities and fellow employees throughout his career. His depth and breadth of knowledge and wise counsel will be sorely missed."

• Shannon L. Venable, vice president-Financial Management (Generation) has become vice president-Information Technology. She reports to Margaret E. "Lyn" McDermid, senior vice president and Chief Information Officer. The position is being created in recognition of the increasing complexity of IT issues – including cybersecurity and compliance – as well as the critical importance of technology in the success of Dominion. Venable joined Dominion in 1982 in Transmission & Distribution Construction and Operations. She served in a number of management positions, including director-IT Business Accounts, before being promoted to vice president-Integrated Resource Planning in 2007. She became vice president-Financial Management (Generation) in 2010. Venable earned a bachelor's degree from Michigan State University in electrical engineering.
• Thomas R. Bean, vice president-Financial Analysis (Alternative Energy Solutions), has succeeded Venable, reporting to Fred G. Wood III, senior vice president-Financial Management (Generation). Bean joined Virginia Power in 1978 as a service representative and later worked in financial planning, market research and market analysis. He was promoted to vice president-Financial Management at Dominion in 2004 and later became vice president-Financial Management for the Transmission & Distribution business of Dominion Virginia Power. Bean assumed the role of vice president-Financial Analysis (Alternative Energy Solutions) in 2009. He has a bachelor's degree from the University of Virginia in commerce and an MBA from George Washington University.
• Patricia G. Shell, vice president & General Auditor, has become vice president-Financial Analysis (Alternative Energy Solutions), reporting to Mary C. Doswell, senior vice president-Alternative Energy Solutions. Shell joined Dominion in 1997 as general auditor after working for the accounting firms Ernst & Young and Deloitte. She held other management positions in Corporate Accounting, Dominion Energy Clearinghouse and Dominion Energy before becoming vice president & General Auditor in 2008. She received a bachelor's degree in accounting from Virginia Tech and is a certified public accountant.
• Michele L. Cardiff, controller-Generation Accounting, has been promoted to vice president & General Auditor, succeeding Shell. She reports to Farrell. Cardiff joined the company as a senior accountant in 1996. Her previous positions included assistant controller for the Services Company and director-Accounting for the Services Company before assuming the position of controller-Generation Accounting in 2009. Cardiff has a bachelor's degree in accounting from Virginia Tech and is a certified public accountant.

Said Farrell:

"The new assignments and promotion reflect well on the quality and depth of the leadership team at Dominion. All have distinguished themselves in their current assignments and will bring the value of their past experiences to their new roles. Their varied experiences will help promote our culture of teamwork that is critical to Dominion's success."

Dominion is one of the nation's largest producers and transporters of energy, with a portfolio of approximately 28,000 megawatts of generation, 11,000 miles of natural gas transmission, gathering and storage pipeline and 6,300 miles of electric transmission lines.  Dominion operates the nation's largest natural gas storage system with 947 billion cubic feet of storage capacity and serves retail energy customers in 15 states. For more information about Dominion, visit the company's website at www.dom.com.

SOURCE Dominion